Inside Health

WHERE THE MONEY GOES; The Few Who Cost the Most

Published: August 25, 2009

In 2006, annual health spending in this country was less than $800 per individual for half the population. But spending varies widely, and the high-cost people include the elderly, the obese and people who identify themselves as unhealthy. Median spending for those groups was $2,300 in 2006, and 10 percent of such cases exceeded $15,000. Although those groups make up only about one-third of the United States population, as shown below they account for almost 60 percent of health care spending.